You are here: Study at Parami > Undergraduate Studies > Public Health

Public Health

The Bachelor of Arts in Public Health prepares students to address complex health challenges at community, national, and global levels. Public Health majors study the social, cultural, political, economic, and environmental determinants of health, along with the skills required for public health practice such as evidence-based research, data-driven analysis, strategic communication, and ethical leadership. Combined with the general competencies and interdisciplinary education that define Parami’s undergraduate programs, the Public Health major equips graduates to pursue careers in health promotion, humanitarian response, policy advocacy, and community development, advancing health equity and community wellbeing.

Course Overview

Duration: 4-years, full-time

Medium: Online

Term begins: August every year

The bachelor’s degree program in Public Health was designed in direct response to regional and contextual needs. The Public Health major equips students with an applied and community-oriented framework that empowers students to analyze, design, and implement practical solutions for population-level health challenges. The program’s interdisciplinary curriculum enables students to understand the myriad aspects of public health, from its cultural and historical dimensions to the ways in which economic systems influence public health outcomes. The program aligns closely with Parami’s liberal arts model to cultivate globally minded problem solvers addressing real-world issues.

This program explores topics such as health equity; disease and demographic transition; epidemiology and biostatistics; health, conflict, and the environment; principles and practices of public health; the craft of social inquiry; climate and environmental science; health economics; health systems and policy; infectious diseases; and non-communicable diseases, mental health, and injury.

Degree

The bachelor’s program in Public Health is offered as a dual degree program between Parami University and Bard College. Program graduates will receive two bachelor's degrees - one from Parami University and one from Bard College.

Full-time students will be able to complete requirements for the Bachelor’s Degree in Public Health in four years.

Liberal Arts and Science Curriculum

Our liberal arts and sciences curriculum offers you the unique opportunity to discover your passion and interests with a wide array of core courses and elective courses across diverse disciplines. After immersing yourself in foundational coursework during your first two years, you will emerge as a well-rounded individual with critical thinking, interdisciplinary analysis, and advanced communication skills. Starting from the third year of studies, you will choose your major and specialization.

Liberal Arts and Science Core and Elective Courses

Core courses in liberal arts and sciences are mandatory for all incoming students. In the first-year and second-year seminar courses, you will read seminal texts from across Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas as a basis for your intellectual inquiry. English composition courses will provide you with a solid foundation in the language skills necessary to effectively articulate your ideas, perspectives, and arguments. You will also be exposed to a range of academic disciplines by choosing elective courses in the arts, social sciences, humanities, mathematics, and natural sciences. Read more below to explore your sample study plan.

Public Health Major Courses

Alongside the liberal arts and sciences curriculum, Public Health students at Parami University take focused courses that address population-level health challenges in community, national, and global contexts. The major emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the social, cultural, political, economic, and environmental determinants of health, with particular attention to the realities of conflict-affected and resource-constrained settings in Myanmar and Southeast Asia. Through foundational and core courses, students build competencies in public health practice, epidemiology and biostatistics, health systems and policy, health equity, and the relationships between health, environment, and conflict. Upper-level electives allow students to explore specialized areas such as global health, population studies, and public health leadership. Together, these courses provide students with the analytical, practical, and ethical skills needed to design evidence-based interventions and contribute to more equitable and resilient communities.

EXPLORE COURSE CATALOG

Sample Study Plan

Full-time students are required to take 4 or 5 courses each semester, and they can choose from many core and elective courses offered in various disciplines. Below is a 4-year sample study plan for ESS major students. For a full course list, please refer to the course catalog.

Year 1
First Semester

________________________________________________________________________

First-Year Seminar I

4 Credits

First-Year Seminar I

English Composition I

4 Credits

English Composition I focuses on the foundation skills of university-level writing. The course will take students through all the steps of the expository writing process, from pre-writing to revising and proofreading. Students will work through a series of expository essays, including narratives and descriptive pieces. The course will support them in acquiring appropriate critical reading skills, as well as following conventions of standard English in writing. Students will also be introduced to selecting, using, and correctly referencing sources.

Craft of Social Inquiry

4 Credits

This course is an introductory course for social studies. We will cover what social inquiry is and why it is important. During this course we will look at different methods of knowing and making sense of the world. We will focus on typical questions that are asked in social science and specific approaches to answer these questions. You will learn the importance of interdisciplinary approaches to answering questions in the field of social science, for instance through a in-depth study on climate change. Selected readings from different social science disciplines will be used as an interdisciplinary approach to addressing questions in this field.

Science in Daily Life

1 Credit

Science in Daily Life

Principles and Practices of Public Health

4 Credits

Principles and Practices of Public Health

Year 1
Second Semester

________________________________________________________________________

First-Year Seminar II

4 Credits

First-Year Seminar II

English Composition II

4 Credits

English Composition II focuses on the process of argumentative writing, from initial development through drafting and revising to the final product. This course focuses on students' ability to use sources to form strong arguments in academic writing. In this course, students will design their own arguments using sources to write and present their ideas effectively.

Health Systems and Policy

4 Credits

Health Systems and Policy

Introduction to Statistics

4 Credits

This course provides an introduction to the quantitative tools for monitoring, analyzing data, and evaluating data. Through practical and real-world applications, students learn statistical methods that can be used in quantitative analysis of real-world problems. This course focuses both on concepts underlying statistical methods as well as problem solving through the use of STATA, a popular statistical software package.

Social Science and Research Skills

1 Credit

Social Science and Research Skills

Year 2
First Semester

________________________________________________________________________

Second-Year Seminar I

4 Credits

Second-Year Seminar I

Programming with Python

4 Credits

This course is an introduction to programming with Python for students without any previous programming experience. Throughout the class, we will cover different data types, writing functions, using packages like Numpy and Python, and creating data visualizations. We will also use version control with Git.

Non-communicable Diseases, Mental Health, and Injury

4 Credits

Non-communicable Diseases, Mental Health, and Injury

Introduction to Infectious Diseases and One Health

4 Credits

Introduction to Infectious Diseases and One Health

Year 2
Second Semester

________________________________________________________________________

Second-Year Seminar II

4 Credits

Second-Year Seminar II

Health Economics

4 Credits

Health Economics

Introduction to Climate and Environmental Science

4 Credits

Introduction to Climate and Environmental Science

Design and Society

4 Credits

Design and Society

Year 3
First Semester

________________________________________________________________________

Health, Conflict, and Environment

4 Credits

Health, Conflict, and Environment

Epidemiology and Biostatistics

4 Credits

Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Introduction to Microeconomics

4 Credits

Introduction to Microeconomics

Introduction to Political Science

4 Credits

Introduction to Political Science

Year 3
Second Semester

________________________________________________________________________

Health Equity, Disease and Demographic Transition

4 Credits

Health Equity, Disease and Demographic Transition

Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health

4 Credits

Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health

Introduction to Macroeconomics

4 Credits

Introduction to Macroeconomics

Calculus I

1 Credit

This course is an introduction to differential calculus. Topics will cover functions, limits, derivatives, and applications. The basic concept of integration is also included.

Year 4
First Semester

________________________________________________________________________

Senior Capstone I

4 Credits

Senior Capstone I

Global Health

4 Credits

Global Health

Statistical Programming with R

4 Credits

Statistical Programming with R

Writing Self and World

4 Credits

In this course, students will explore the challenges of writing nonfiction in forms that go beyond the academic essay. In particular, they will explore the following:

1. The craft of memoir and the transformative power of personal storytelling

2. The art of literary reportage

3. The literary essay — bridging the personal and the political.

This course aims to take students from first steps in writing creative nonfiction to engaging with the global marketplace for creative nonfiction writing.

Year 4
Second Semester

________________________________________________________________________

Senior Capstone II

4 Credits

Senior Capstone II

Leadership and Management in Public Health

4 Credits

Leadership and Management in Public Health

Data Communication and Ethics

4 Credits

Data Communication and Ethics

Developmental Economics

4 Credits

Developmental Economics

Career & Graduate Pathways

Graduates of Public Health are prepared for diverse career opportunities in health promotion, humanitarian response, policy advocacy, and community development, fields that are increasingly vital to rebuilding resilient societies in the Global South.

Possible career pathways include Community Health Worker, Public Health Analyst, Monitoring and Evaluation Associate, Health Education Specialist, Program Coordinator, and Environmental Health Officer.

Through interdisciplinary coursework and hands-on experiences such as capstone projects and field-based learning, students gain a strong understanding of the social, political, economic, and environmental factors shaping population health and wellbeing. They develop skills in qualitative and quantitative analysis, research, and evidence-based policy design, while strengthening communication and advocacy for equity-driven, data-informed public health solutions.

The holistic education at Parami University prepares students for a variety of roles in different industries, particularly suited for professional careers that require analytical and critical thinking skills, effective communication skills and command of the written language, complex problem-solving, and interdisciplinary knowledge.

Globally recognized degree and academic excellence, combined with practical experience offered by various student activities, work opportunities, and the senior capstone project, will enable the graduates of the Parami to be globally competitive for both further education and professional careers.